Clare in Wonderland
by MadameLivi
Summary: Clare Edwards is the long lost great granddaughter of Alice Kingsleigh and Wonderland/Underland has been awaiting her arrival for over a hundred years. A certain shaggy black haired resident of Wonderland may convince her to stay or she may make him leave
1. Chapter 1

Down a Hole:

I was running, from what I don't know. Maybe my parents constant fighting. Maybe from the drama in the Degrassi halls. Maybe from my lying, cheating ex-boyfriend K.C. and his new girl Jenna. But as I said, I don't know what I'm running from so I'll keep running till I know why.

I saw a bright pink flower in the distance. Well I'm bored why not go make a little bouquet or whatever. I put my blue backpack down next to a tree and left my book. I was reading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a silly unrealistic book if you ask me. Who would chase a rabbit all the way down a hole? I'm not that desperate for adventure. I came to the flower and looked at it.

It was the brightest pink ever, maybe more bright than Alli's last pair of stilettos, which were neon pink. The stem was a perfect straight line and had no brown spots or munchies out of it from bugs. There were two perfect leaves that were in symmetrical positions on each side. The center of the flower was a lighter shade of pink, almost a blush. Overall it was beautiful.

I reached out to grab it, but I was careful to make sure not to break it. I put my hand on the muddy grass underneath in and reached for the perfect stem. But then the unthinkable happened.

"Watch where you put your hands you dim-witted girl!," yelled he flower in my direction.

I screamed and fell back, but there was no ground to catch me. I was falling head first down a whole. Everything around me was quite odd though. Clocks were pressed into the soil walls and there were little tables and chairs too. I was still screaming when I smacked myself into a rocking chair and the fell backwards out of that. I was terrified. The walls began whispering my name in a childish voice of a mad man. _Clare…Clare… Clare_ it taunted me.

"What do you want!" I yelped at it as I fell deeper and deeper into a dark abyss. _Down to Wonderland you go you picked the flower because you were chose. A hatter, a cat, and a queen. You'll visit them because the real worlds mean. _The voice told me in a poetic yet psychotic matter.

"You don't know anything about me!" I screeched to the walls. My pale blue sundress was flying in the wind and my curls were flying around my ivory skin. The light brown tresses were now tangled behind me. My black flats with a small wedge were still on my feet ,confusingly. I was sure I would've lost them long ago.

_But we know everything Clare Diane Edwards. K.C. cheated on you with a boyfriend stealer who posed as your friend. Your parents are fighting and you are fearful. Your best friend chose that exact girl who stole K.C. from you over you yourself. Your school used to mock you as the nerd so you cut of your hair and got a new wardrobe. You are a new soul to this messed up world. _The childish voices muttered my current story. I was frightened, so frightened. I started screaming again.

The walls began to be made of stone instead of soil, I wondered if I would hit magma soon. Maybe I'd burn to death and this nightmare would be over. I hope so. I tried to claw at the rocks, paper maps, and shelves but I would just slip off out of my grip. I was falling straight down, with my face going towards something, but what?

With that I thumped into the ground. It was oddly round and painted with black and white squares. I looked around until I noticed my hair was standing straight up, the curls where hanging freely. I began to feel blood rush to my head so I looked up. There was a small glass table on the ceiling. What in the name of? Then I fell again. This time it was brief though. I hit the ground fast. I stood up and saw many different sized doors. A way out?

I walked up to the largest door and yanked the handle. Nothing. Then I tried the next door. Nothing, again. I did this with exactly six other doors until I came to a conclusion that I wasn't getting out.

It was then that I saw a large red velvet curtain. I walked up and pulled it across the metal rod on which it was hanging to reveal a small one foot tall door. It was only about six inches wide. I tried to open in but with no luck. I turned around and sighed, until I saw a key laying on the glass table. I grabbed it quickly and tried it on every large door with no luck and then on the small one. It opened revealing a bright field with a gray sky. I tried to squeeze my head through the door but I wouldn't fit. A little glass bottle rolled by revealing a small note. _Drink Me. _Gross. I have no idea what that liquid even is! I'm definitely no going to drink it. I grabbed it and pulled the cap off. It smelt a little strong, like a clear soda pop. I took a small sip of it. It tasted fine, but really old and stale. Almost as if it had been here over one hundred years. My head ached really bad for a few seconds and then everything grew…or I had more accurately shrunk. This was just like the book of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland but I was smart and left the door open. I walked through the tiny door to reveal a beautiful land of singing flowers and bright colors. A large white castle covered in white chess pieces was left in the distance. Many odd animals were chasing each other and sipping tea, a few humans were there too.

I began blindly walking down the stone stairs to the long grass. While marveling at the beauty and strange people in large hats or strangely matched suits, something bumped into me. I looked up to see a boy with large green eyes and shaggy black hair. He wore a black jacket with a gray shirt underneath and red pants. He had orange shoes and a large green bow tie. He ,unlike the others, was not wearing a top hat. It looked like he was wearing black eyeliner though.

"Pardon me, I wasn't watching where I was going," he said quickly, "The name is ,Eli," the strange boy told me with a smile.

"I'm Clare. Clare Edwards," I told him with a nervous smile. I'm not going to lie, he was cute. Really cute.

"Edwards? Daughter of Randal Edwards who was the son of Millie Kingsleigh who was the daughter of Alice Kingsleigh?" Eli asked quickly with wide eyes.

"Um…yes…how on earth did you know that? Why does everyone know my name?" Now I was scared. There were all these people who knew everything about me.

"We have been waiting for you for over a hundred years ,Clare," Eli whispered.

_One hundred years…_


	2. Chapter 2

What? One hundred years waiting for a high school outsider? It all seemed really quite hard to believe. I looked into Eli's green eyes one pupil was larger than the other, this was a sign of psychotic principles. I looked around this world, everything seemed in order. Dancing children and many healthy trees and plants. If anything it was better than the real world.

"Why do you people need me?" I asked with wonder.

"You are to take the Underland throne ,Clare. You will lead armies and decide laws. We just passed one yesterday that everyday at noon everyone must dance and gather in the center of the fields to greet each other. It is such a joy for most but I find it a little unnecessary. Who needs such a silly tradition," Eli continued.

"Why me? I'm but a distant child of Alice. Wouldn't my grandmother or father have taken over?" I ask Eli feverishly. I didn't think I was good enough to take on such a responsibility. I was just a nerd, I knew much but could I put it all in action?

"You were the first relative to fall down the whole! Darcy failed miserably. We set up a picnic basket in the open on a day where she and Peter where out on a date but she completely ignored it. What a dim-wit. We knew you would marvel in the beauty of our magical flowers. So bright and gorgeous. Much like yourself ,Madame," Eli told me with a sly grin.

I blush and quickly look down to my flats. "Thanks," I mutter. I hear him chuckle softly.

"Not to mention you gorgeous eyes! No one in Underland has a comparable shade of yours," he tells me as he steps closer.

I grow a little more nervous. "Really?" I ask softly. No one in my entire life had called me pretty, or gorgeous, except my family or Alli a few times. I felt bolder around this Eli boy.

"But of course. Now let us go greet your awaited kingdom," and with that he grabs my hand and leads me through the tall flowers and odd shaped bushes. We come across an odd tea time table. It had around five smaller tables to make it up, with many mismatched chairs and dishes. A cat sits on one edge of the table, with a man at the other. Two rabbits, one clean and well bathed with the other dirty and crusted, sat next to each other on the left side of the table and a dodo bird was across from them. All except the cat wore waistcoats.

"My fellow Underland residents! Clare Edwards has arrived! She has fallen down to the hole and found us in our high time! Let her bring us to an even higher one!" Eli announced in a regal tone. A few women and men walked out from behind the tall flowers. They smiled at me…all except one. She was short with a very thin stature and dawned a black tutu with a dark purple coat. Her shirt underneath was a hot pink and she had tall green leggings with black shoes. Odd. This girl walked forward and stared at me.

"But she's so ugly!" exclaimed the girl. "I do not want her as the face of my home."

"Julia!" Eli scolded. "Why are you so rude? She's much prettier than you."

Julia scoffed, "In my nightmares maybe. What is little Eli developing a crush on the chosen one? Hmm?" she babbled on with her high pitched screech of a voice.

"Maybe I am! If anything she's better than your lying, horrible self!"

"What are you saying? I thought you loved me but two months ago?"

"Ha! Biggest mistake of my time!" and with that, Eli grabbed my hand. He quickly walked to the large tea table and sat me next to the tall, lanky man at the end of the table. Eli sat right next to me and the lanky man in the biggest hat smiled in my direction.

"Alice? It's been one hundred years, my boy! Terribly late, son," The man tells me.

"Oh I'm not Alice. I'm Clare Edwards, her great-granddaughter. I'm apparently here for my kingdom?" I tell him and then turn to Eli who is nodding to the man.

"Oh! Sorry bout the drama with K.C. that Jenna girl is such an evil little devil isn't she? Don't worry the council and I saw another sweet little boy in your future," he says. I cough on my tea.

"Pardon? You know my past and my future?" I say as I clear my throat.

"Well of course ,Clare! We all know about you. Even your new little friend Eli. My goodness! I've forgotten to introduce myself now haven't I! I am Tarrant but everyone calls me the Hatter. So you may follow their trend," Hatter tells me.

"Well who's in my future? Which little boy?" I ask quickly. I mean, what girl wouldn't want to know?

"Oh you've met him recently," Hatter says as he ours himself some tea with a smirk.

"Oh have I? Is it Connor or Wesley? Please say no!" Connor and Wesley were good friends but I honestly did not find them attractive.

"Oh heavens no little one," Hatter responds, "Much more of a recent greeting."

"Oh, okay," I sigh. It was probably some other science geek I just met. Darn.

"Well, now that you guys have met, we should start teaching her of Underland," Eli broke in.

"Ok of course ,my girl. We should. Well Clare you should know that Underland used to be taken over by the evil red queen. This is not to say she will not return from the outer skirts of Underland to regain control. This is where you come in. If you stay you will take over the castle and become the Blue Queen. You will rule the entire kingdom and choose a king. He can be from the outside or one of our citizens," I heard Eli as he began to tense up when the Hatter said that. " You will create and army and the White Queen would be your mentor. You may have noticed our lovely Underland residents?" Hatter now turns to ask me.

"Yes. I have seen a few," I respond thinking of the rude Julia.

"Well a few of them have tried to overthrow the capital to take over Underland. Julia in particular. She failed though. However, no one can be trusted now. I mean, even I might be able to overthrow the capital!" Hatter laughs heavily. "But I wouldn't do that, partially because I'm already in the Eternal Council. I have no use changing our lovely empire."

"Who else is in the council?" I intently ask.

"Well Chess, McTwisp, March Hare, and Dodo," Hatter told me.

I gave him a puzzled expression, the only one I thought I was sure of was Dodo being the dodo bird.

"Oh let me clarify. The smiling cat, the white rabbit, the brown rabbit, and the dodo bird," he said as he pointed to the members.

Chess, the cat, disappeared leaving only a smile which disappeared soon after. Then, he reappeared on my lap.

"Clare, that K.C. boy was such an evil brat. I'll tell you a piece of his future! He gets the little devil Jenna pregnant, carrying his child," Chess says with a mischievous smile. Then he again disappears to reappear in the chair across from me. McTwisp hopped up to me and sits next to Eli.

"Be glad you where that purity ring, darling," McTwisp, the white rabbit, tells me, "Not to say that you won't do something before marriage with a certain boy from-"

Hatter pokes him in the stomach. "We do not release information of Clare's future. Especially of the future king!"

But now I needed to know who this future king was. Was it someone from Degrassi? Maybe someone from Underland? Hmm. I could ask McTwisp.

"Let's make our way to the castle ,Clare," Hatter says as he stands from the large chair he sat in. It wasn't till I stood up that I noticed my dress was very loose. Probably from the Drink Me juice. I looked down and you could almost see my bra. It was awful, but Eli was staring. Which was just flat out embarrassing. Hatter looked at me and gasped.

"We cannot have the queen see you like this!" he says. "Come with me and I will make you a different dress, child"

"Um…okay," I say before Hatter tugs me behind the flowers to a little hut. We walked in to reveal a tall, circular table in the middle. Every color of fabric imaginable was on rolls that were pushed against a wall. I noticed he had a large jar of thimbles and thread. He helped me get up do I could stand on the circular table. He took my measurement and began snipping and snapping the thread and fabric. I looked down to see white lace and blue silk fabric. It looked like a twisted ball gown that was from a different world.

It ran tight until it hit my waist where it puffed our into gathered layers that had a lot of navy fabric underneath the light blue ones. The white lace hung loosely off of my shoulders. The dress went to about my knees and overall was very beautiful.

"Wow," I said, marveling at the elaborate stitches. "This is so beautiful, Hatter."

"I'm glad you like it," he says with a huge grin. "You should know that I do design your wedding dress. I thought the results were quite good. It was very glittery."

"Who do I marry, Hatter?" I just had to know.

"I will give you a hint. He's from Underland," Hatter tells me with a soft smile.

Wow. My future husband was down here somewhere. I wondered if I'd meet him today. Maybe he was handsome. I did hope for that dearly, no one wants their children at risk of being ugly.

"He's very nice, I know him dearly," Hatter continued. I believe he noticed that I wasn't responding.

"I bet," I said with a little laugh.

"Well we better get going to find the queen," Hatter grabs my hand and leads me back to the tea table. Eli was sitting with his head in his hands. Julia was smirking over him. She looked so evil with the blue light of the day on her black hair.

"What's wrong, Eli?" I ask him.

"Julia says that you are going to die after you marry someone from above," he says with tears.

I was going to die. Had Hatter lied or Julia?

**Thank you all for reading my stories. I'd really appreciate it if you could checkout my other stories at ****.**** xoxo Madame Livi**


	3. Chapter 3

Associations with a Rabbit: Chapter 3

I didn't know what to do. I had a hunch that Julia was lying though, because she had despised me from the beginning. I decided to ask McTwisp, the little white rabbit.

I ran in quick pace to the little hut that was next to Hatter's dress shop. It was simple, idle too, and painted a soft pink. Little rabbits were painted on the bottom of the outer walls, so I could rightfully suppose that McTwisp lived here. I walked through the garden, I felt large here. Even though I had drank the stale drink, this house was made for a rabbit's size. I almost crushed a little bench under my shoe. I heard movement inside the small house so I continued through the yard, now carefully.

McTwisp was obviously searching for something frantically inside his home. I heard drawers being slammed and clothes being thrown. I crouched down by the door and knocked on it with my knuckle. I heard small footsteps rush down the hall and the door was opened. McTwisp gasped when he opened the door to see me crouched in the doorway.

"Heavens! You almost gave me a heart attack. Is there something you needed?" he asks while holding his chest.

"Actually yes. I really need to know my future. I won't overreact or freak out. I just need to know," I say with a pleading stature.

"Oh. I suppose you are a little confused here, just falling down and all. No one really gave you a choice. I will spare you a few informational facts," McTwisp looks up at me with a smile.

"Thank you so much ,McTwisp!" I almost squealed, but kept myself acting ladylike.

"You're quite welcome, little girl. Now, drink this so you can come inside the house," McTwisp says as he hands me a bottle almost identical to the one I'd found on the glass table. Oh god, not more stale drink.

"Is it stale, like the one in the room I fell into?"

McTwisp laughs at me, "Heavens no, child! That concoction had been in there for over a hundred years! That was the one your great grandmother had drank."

Okay gross.

I sipped the liquid once, realizing that it tastes better stale. The fresh made one was very strong and tasted like sweat. I was going to ask what was in it but then decided it'd be better for me not to know. I quickly dripped a little bit of the drink on my dress so that it would still fit when I shrank. It actually worked. As I began to shrink down I wanted to know how I'd grow back after our long chat about my future. It kind of hurts when you shrink. Your insides squeeze for a little and your head will ache. Your skin gets really hot while your temperature rises when you shrink because all the blood in your body rushes quickly to one place. Soon enough though, I was the height of McTwisp and I was entering his home.

McTwisp offered me a chair by the fire. The fire was made of very small twigs and the flame was the size of my now shrunken hand. The chair I sat in was comfortable though, it was pink with a carrot pattern. I let my legs hang off of the edge of the chair while McTwisp hopped into the other chair with a mighty leap.

"Yes, you will be able to grow back. I could tell by your face when you were shrinking that you were worried. You have very expressional movements, child," McTwisp says as he pours me a cup of tea and also one for himself. "So what is it you would like to know?"

"Okay, first off, who am I going to marry. It seems to be a very controversial subject down here, especially with Julia and Eli. I mean one person would say I marry an Underland resident and then another says that I'll marry an outsider and die. I need answers," I demand with a sip of tea.

McTwisp sighs, but with a smile, and lets out a small laugh, "Little teenage girls, always wanting to know who they shall marry. So yes you are to marry someone from the outside but ,no, you do not die." He smiles and passes me a lump of sugar to which I decline.

"Oh," I was disappointed. It seemed everyone on the outside was against me, but here I felt strong. I felt stronger than ever.

"However, you can change this, it's just what the queen says will happen. You can do whatever you want now that you are apparent to your options. Let's say you wanted to marry one of our residents. You could, you would marry and become a citizen of Wonderland. We would make up a story and message you parents, who you would still be able to visit often, so that they believe you are attending college or whatnot." McTwisp deciphers my tone of expression in a very analytical way, obviously.

"Thank Gosh," I mumble. McTwisp just smiles at me.

"Anything else?" he excitedly asks me.

"What is this Julia-girl's problem!" I yell, sorry the anticipation was building.

"Ah, the Bad-Hatter," he chuckles deep, "Before she tried to overthrow the White Queen, she and Elijah were dating. He was very pained with their relationship but thought that her attempt at overthrowing the queen was his fault. It was very like him to do this because he often thinks everything is his fault. However, now they just despise each other, she tried to get him back often time again but he just can't stand to see her face."

"So does he have a new girlfriend?" I was curious.

"No. Even though it has been almost a year in you Earth-time, he has not found the right girl. Everyone here is very, how do you say it, fake. The girls all just want to be the White Queen or the miraculous _Clare Edwards _who is technically the Princess of Underland. They are all very full of themselves, too. One girl , Jolly, wants to be with Eli so bad that she ambushed him with your great-grandmother's Vorpal Sword. She was very threatening. Now she's in the jail though.," McTwisp looked at his pocket watch and his radish red eyes bulge.

"Goodness we must go see the Queen!" he runs to his kitchen retrieving a small box labeled _Eat Me_. Throwing it at my face, he scrambles to grab a different coat. "Eat it! Just a bite though, you'll grow back to regular size."

I did as he said and instantly grew, feeling queasy as I changed. I squeezed myself out of the door and walked to find Eli, Hatter, Chess, and March Hare waiting to go with us to see the Queen. Eli comes up with his hand stuck out to me and a smirk plastered onto his green-eyed face.

We walked hand in hand to go figure out my destiny.

**Please go to my profile and click the website link to go read my non-fan fiction books. I would really appreciate that. Merci for reading!**

**X o x o MadameLivi **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: Dum, Dee, and the Queen**

**The walk was a comfortable one. Eli and I walked quietly hand in hand. I felt comfortable near him, like I was safe from the outside. Julia had caught up with us after we had walked only a few yards. As soon as she saw Eli holding my hand though, she grumbled crossing her arms with balled fists. All she would do was complain the entire trip. When Eli and I began small talk about Underland, she'd give out a deep sigh and kick small stones at my feet. **

"**So the Queen's castle is very bright and happy, she was especially fond of Alice. You see, Alice defeated the Jabberwocky who was the Red Queen's warrior who held Underland in despair. Defeating the Jabberwocky meant letting the White Queen reclaiming Underland and creating a peaceful life. The White Queen has seen every history of your life and simply adores your courage, in Darcy's incidents and that dumb-monster K.C., so she finds you as a suitable and perfect Queen after your marriage," Eli went on.**

"**Excuse me? I have to wait until after marriage to become queen? What's that nonsense?" I argued.**

"**It's customary. After you marry, you and your husband have a ceremony to claim Underland. Before that, your are alongside the White Queen , learning duties," **

**Hatter let out muffled laughter, "Duties."**

"**Oh, but there is the option that I can still marry someone here and not from the outside, right?" I whisper in his ears. He laughs.**

"**Yes, I suppose McTwisp wasn't good at keeping secrets," **

"**Certainly not, he almost handed me the answers on a silver platter," I giggle softly.**

"**You have Alice's eyes," Eli added after a few silent moments.**

"**Um, really?" I had never seen a picture of Alice. I hadn't often looked at old family pictures.**

"**Yes, she had very blue eyes, clear as roaring waters much like yours," he smiles running to Hatter and slipping a small book out of his coat pocket. Hatter looked at him, flabbergasted at first but then after he looked back to me, he smiled and nodded.**

"**This is our latest history book. It goes from Alice to Darcy and from Mittie to Hamish. Here is Alice when she was nineteen," Eli opens the book and begins shuffling through the creamed pages. He stopped at one page and promptly stuffed the book into my hands.**

**In front of me was a tall and lean blonde. Her hair curled in ringlets and a midsized nose. Her distracting eyes were an optical illusion, though they were black and white. The clear eyes were similar to mine, only lined with thinner lashes.**

"**That's amazing," I told him as I continued to study the picture of Alice holding a small rabbit. She looked serious, like she was pained to do something. I wouldn't say her facial expression was a scowl, but it wasn't a smile. She looked…proud. It was as if she was in the highest honor but could not brag, yet could not subtly accept herself. It was the look of a true champion. **

"**Yeah, I only met her once," whispered Eli from beside me as he toyed with one of the assorted colored buttons on his waist coat. **

"**Wait! You met my great- grandmother? How in the name of time did that happen?" I had my eyes fixed in contact with his as I searched for the sense of this lie. There was none. He just looked at me with an expression as if I was dumb for even assuming otherwise.**

"**Indeed he did!" a voice from behind me told intently.**

"**He did indeed?" an almost identical voice opposed.**

"**Did he indeed?"**

"**Indeed did he!"**

"**Oh," the first voice concluded.**

"**Uh, who are you?" I asked quickly. These boys were strange. They were bald with now brows and wore button up blue shirts. Their pants were a neon yellow that covered their large bellies. The way they spoke made them questionably odd.**

"**I'm Dum, he's Dee," the first voice said.**

"**And he'd Dee, I'm Dum," the second said.**

"**No you aren't," answered the first again.**

"**No, aren't I?" questioned the second.**

"**No!"**

"**Oh," said the odd one officially now known as Dee, though he should be the one named Dum.**

"**Well to answer your question, in a simpler of matters than they may have, yes I had met Alice. Though she was eighty-nine at the time and I was only three. It's not as if I had a big and grand conversation with her, other than a quick 'We'll miss you Alice' or something along those lines," Eli concluded.**

"**I never met her. She was a resident in England, not Canada. I've never left Canada except for a quick three day visit to go see Darcy in Kenya. I have family in Italy too, that I've never met," I tell him.**

"**You were only two when she died but she did leave you something here, we'll find it in the Queen's castle," he said as we picked up the pace. **

**Though when I looked up I saw a great and grand white, sparkling castle. Little men armored in suits to look like chess pieces walked around the colored garden petting small and fuzzy animals. They would push small children on swings and bring out sandwiches with tea. The front of the castle was adorned with a silver throne which reached the tip of the first story, obviously fit for a queen. There was one next to it too, though it was cracked and collecting dust. The stones and jewels lining the top had fallen out and had not been replaced. It looked strange, being so imperfect and worn next to one sparkling and washed to perfection. **

**We walked up the steps though and to the side into a large door, but Julia stood still on the steps. Arms crossed and angered. "What do you want?" I question her with attitude.**

"**I cannot go in," she huffs, "I am not welcome in this 'loving land of friendship'." Decorating her words with her stickler attitude, she turns and growls at a small puppy-like animal that was sitting with it's tongue hanging out, though now the fuzz-ball was streaming full speed across the field.**

"**Well okay, snappy pants," I mutter as we walk in. Hatter runs quickly to my side and slaps a large, light blue bow into my short curls. "Ouch!" I yelp.**

"**You must look your best for the queen!" he smiles with giggles. I let out a sigh but fix myself with a smile. As we walk down the halls, I notice that the walls are dawned with beautiful pictures of many people. Alice was there, with a slight grin now, sporting a knight's suit while holding a beautiful, blue-glistening sword. The portrait gave the spotless white room color, as if they were windows to a different time. As I looked through to the walls we stopped at a blue and white throne.**

**I look up to be eye to eye with the beautiful, and not aged a day, White Queen.**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm back! Sorry for the long, long wait but I became conflicted with school and moving. Thank you for over 40 reviews!**

Chapter Five: Queens and a Home

The White Queen sat, six inches away from my nose, and carried a small grin along her pale white complexion. Her entire ensemble was white and silver except for two features on her face. Her eyes and lips. Her eyes were almost black against her moonlight skin but you could see the hints of copper brown a blaze with in them. Her lips were a deep black-plum shade that made her face pop out from her angelic presence. Few guards were in the room, but the ones that were sat near the queen with daggers upheld incase their precious jewel was to be touched.

"Clare, darling, we have been waiting for you! My, you are even more beautiful in person! Look at those eyes! Just like Alice. Must be how you could see it to come here," the White Queen tells me with a little giggle under her breath. She rises from her throne and the guards align themselves in a single row. Grabbing my hand daintily, she leads me down the hall with gradual steps in very loud shoes.

"So Clare, are you ready to lead by my side?" she asks me with widened black eyes on my face.

"Um, I believe so. It's not so good for me up in the real world," I look down at my flats and frown.

"I know dear, that's why we saw this as a perfect time to take you here. We want to see you happy again,"

"That's very kind of you, being strangers and all," I smile to her kindly.

"Ha! Strangers. It doesn't feel that way when you're me. I've seen it all. From your first day in the hospital to your wedding day and even longer than that," the Queen says as she continues to drag me through the halls, I don't know where we are going.

"That's not too stalker-ish," I try to say with a laugh.

"I like to consider it 'extreme love' instead," she jokes to me.

We get towards the end of the long marble hall when the Queen jerks me through a doorway. In front of me was a giant flight of granite blue stairs.

"Well let's go to the Clare Wing of the kingdom shan't we?" she says to intrigue me. Then, I am being shuffled up the stairs with a great speed as she sprints up the stairs, skipping steps on the way up. The toes of my shoes are making me stumble over edges but I continue throwing my free hand down to push me back up. Once we reach the middle of the infinite amount of stairs I can see the light of the coming room. She continues to drag me until we finally reach the top and the view is apprehending.

A giant portrait of me lies on the large main wall. I am the same age as I am now and I am holding a small key in my palm. The dress I wear is long and blue with silver beading running down from my waist to the hem. Upon my brunette curls lays a golden crown in crested with blue stones and pearls. On my neck there is a necklace that looks as if a fountain of pearls being streamed down around four inches. Yet the shade of metal that catches my eye, is a small blue diamond on a silver band that laid on my ring finger, left hand to be exact.

"That is me in the future?" I gulp in.

"The near future my child, the very near future," the Queen corrects.

"Well alright then," and with that, we continue in _my wing._

_We turn left from the large portrait and go to a door painted with blue flowers and open it up. Revealed is a large library with a huge claw footed navy couch with a small red book laid on the right arm. A white chair with silver lining is set in front of the couch. Along all of the walls are dark wooden shelves that contain books of every thickness and color, every content probably. The Queen turns me around and heads directly to the other side of the hall with a large excited grin. She flings open the door to show a room adorned with a huge blue canopied bed in the center of the room finished with tons of embroidered white and silver pillows. Above two large letters rest. C and E. Obviously standing for Clare Edwards. On one side there is a little side table toped with a small white keepsake box. The letters OAG are on top. Whatever that means I assume the box is of a relative or a gift from one of my future citizens. The room is so large and perfect._

_The Queen walks to the back of the room and opens a wide wooden door to reveal a humungous bathroom with a tub the size of a bed. This was obviously a dream room for anyone. _

"_Beautiful, isn't it?" I hear a voice from behind me. A man's voice. I turn to see Eli smiling in the doorway. I grin widely._

"_Yes," I say to him._

"_I helped design it for you, the E is neutral," he says to me half flirtatiously._

"_What do you mean?" I ask softly._

"_Depending on your future, it could be Edwards or as I pray to the lords…Elijah," he grins._

"_Maybe time will tell," I whisper as he caresses my cheek in his hand and pulls me into a soft kiss._


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six: The Study of Imagination and the Feeling of Love

Eli draws back from me and then looks deep into my eyes. He smirks slightly and I melt within the air just looking into his green irises that rain beauty into the scene. I hear a deeper, more accented, man's voice come from the front wall.

"Eli, please we must prepare for the coronation tomorrow. Let the princess get some rest child!" the voice, identified as Hatter's, calls. Eli grins widely before sprinting down the hall and taking himself quickly down the stairs after Hatter. I stand in the doorway of my new bedroom, leaning against the hinge with a gaze into nowhere. I liked it here, much more than Degrassi.

The blue floral walls of the hall began to run dark as night approached us. The White Queen came back from wherever she had ran off to, holding out her hand to me. I take it and she gracefully leads me to one of the large wood doors inside my room. She opens it showing a huge closet.

The closet is filled with long rows of elegant gowns. I pull one out to reveal a gorgeous baby pink gown with silver detail embroidery. There are two small straps that fall just off the shoulder and are silver fabric. Around the waist there lies a sky blue ribbon that wraps into a bow on the back. It doesn't look cheesy though, it looks like a fantasy's elegance in a single gown. I rest it back in with all the others and stroll over to the giant rack filled with shoes. There are flats, heels, wedges, riding boots, and everything other than a pair of sneakers or flip-flops. A large row of long drawers in a shade of red oak lies in front of me now and I open them one by one curiously.

The first holds stockings of many shades and patterns. There are floral ones and dotted ones, even stripes. They must go under all of the gowns. I shut the drawer softly and open the next. Awkwardly, there are tons of bras. I doubted that they would have my correct size but I am proved wrong when I lift up a tag reading 36C. Very, very creepy. There are many colors and fabrics, from cotton to silk to… some very revealing and risky lace. I gasp and slam the drawer.

I open the third drawer down to reveal stacks of underwear and panties. The sizes are again correctly medium, some large though. The first few are cotton with flowered patterns and other cute designs. Yet, as I lift deeper I come in contact with some riskier lace sided ones. On the bottom, though, are full on thongs and see through lace. I blush the color of cinnamon and the close that drawer with the same strength as the bra filled one.

I barely open the last drawer without slamming it twice as hard as the last two. Lingerie pieces were overflowed in the huge drawer. Nope, I am not going to use those, never.

On the right wall there is a small cabinet that I open to see many nightgowns in soft shades of blue, pink, and yellow. I pull a pretty blue one with spaghetti straps and a lace layer over a silk one. I would wear this one tonight. Hats are on a shelf above all the dresses in different assortments of sunhats to fur lined ones for the winter.

In the dead center of the luxurious closet lie two mannequins dresses full. On one a long, beaded and draped blue gown with a navy sash over one shoulder. A pair of silver high heels is laid out in front along with a diamond necklace. The other mannequin wears a silver knight's outfit with a shield holding a picture of a crown with a large C on it. It was a battle outfit, for when I must lead wars.

I exit the closet and the Queen waits laying out pillows and then a glass of water on the nightstand. She pulls back the large blue-silk quilt to reveal some light green sheets. I walk into the center of the room with my fingers intertwined waiting for her to look up at me. When she finally turns around she smiles, baring her perfect teeth.

"You look exhausted, there's a bath drawn in the washroom and you of course now know where your nightgowns are. Oh my goodness!" she cries.

"What?" I ask with fear.

"We've forgotten to eat dinner! My goodness gracious I can't believe I forgot dinner! I must be just too very excited!" the Queen laughs as she grabs my hand and rushes me back to the stairs.

"CHEF, PLEASE BEGIN THE PREPERATION OF DINNER AS I FINISH GIVING THE TOUR!" she screams at the top of her lungs down the flight of steps. Then she turns with a smile back to me and shake off the loudness.

"OF COURSE MY DEAREST QUEEN, I'D BE RIGHT ON THAT FOR YOU MADAME!" the chef wails back and I hear the clanking of pans.

"Thank you!" she yells just a tad bit quieter than before. Then she leads me to a door to the right of the large portrait. She opens it to reveal an empty room.

"It's an extra room for a future child possibly. I've seen what it will look like. Love the color selection," she laughs under her breath. I walk into the room and scale my hand along the soft ivory walls. The molding around the edges of the wall is a repeating scene of a rabbit running with a clock then diving down a hole with a young girl chasing after him. Each girl is different in each scene though. I identify myself in the one that has the silhouette of short curls up in the air over a knee length dress.

"Oh! Sounds like dinner is ready!" the White Queen says as I hear pans and plate clanking down stairs and voices quietly ordering others around. We rush down the stairs again and it is much easier going down.

When we reach the table, the Queen sits at the head and the Hatter at the other end. The table is long, around twenty feet or so. I take my place to the right hand of the queen and sit before a glorious meal of turkey, salad, bread rolls, puddings, and a huge chocolate cake in the center. My mouth waters as the chef scurries around the table while pouring hot tea into the small multicolored teacups.

Eli comes and sits in front of me next to Chess and the March Hare. On my right is McTwisp and further down are many of the palace guards. I am served a glorious dinner and love eating it until I am interrupted by a tapping on my ankle. I look up to see Eli smirking with seductive eyes and I quickly turn to the Queen.

"So you said something about a coronation?" I ask her.

"Ah yes. The day in future history that all three choices of the future king come forward for choice and all," she sighs.

"Pardon? All _three_?" I gasp.

**Thank you so much for reading and please go to my profile to check out my website of books that I write! Thank you for all of the lovely reviews and please keep it coming because they are so very inspiring!**

**With So Much Love,**

**MadameLivi**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven: Love Life & Love Prize

My mouth hung open as the Queen was eating her bits of turkey casually. Eli had a look a little similar to mine on his face but his mouth was closed shut. His large green eyes bulged out of their sockets at the White Queen.

"Do I have something in my teeth?" she says as she covers her mouth with her hand.

"Three different men and I'm just 'sposed to know which one to marry?" I said trying to clarify her insanity to a new level.

"Trust me child it won't be hard, not after a looong night's rest," she drones out the o's to emphasize something, but what? I was not going to find out as usual. I mean, seriously, I have dated one guy in my entire life and he goes off with the orange skinned blonde. I have _no_ sense of direction at all. How in the heck is one night's rest going to give me my life's answers. God says that love is kind but at this moment it's spiraling my brain into a knot.

"Well, alright," I sigh a little. The chef slices me a piece of chocolate cake and sets it in front of me. Even though now is not the time to think of food, I can't help but pick up my fork and finish off the delicacy of a dessert. Eli however stares at his slice turning pale. His hat, for some reason, seems to droop at the top a little as he looks as if he's solving the last number in pi. Why? Because it's Impossible.

"Well, I'm off to bed now. I'll just go take that bath and then go to sleep," I give a little, awkward grin and scoot out my chair. Eli watches me with wide eyes and it looks like something clicked on the inside of them, like a fuse was lit off.

"Well, we shall see tomorrow bright in early for preparation of the coronation," the Queen smiles. That was oh-so comforting now wasn't it? Nope.

I turned and found the staircase up to _my_ wing of the castle. After going up the long flight of steps, I walk into my room. I could get used to it in time but for now it still wasn't a home. The bathroom was radiating warmth from the tub so I went inside and decided to wash up.

Perfectly stacked right next to the tub were a blue washcloth, hand towel, and large bath towel. Little shampoo bottles were stacked on the rim of the large white bath and on a hanger above the door was a baby blue night gown. It was rather short with spaghetti straps and a little white bow on the front.

I finally got in the tub (I will spare you the details of the process) and relaxed for the first time in at least a month. The heat of the water had somehow managed to stay through dinner and everything. I washed up my hair and used the little washcloth to wash my face off.

After around thirty minutes I got out and got dressed. I blew out my curls with a small hair dryer that I had found in a cabinet. I looked alright but it wasn't like anyone would see me until tomorrow when I had time to get ready. I mean, a girl has to look good for her kingdom of underground citizens right?

I dug through drawers and found a toothbrush and toothpaste so I could finish my nightly routine off. I grew tired after and decided to drag myself to the giant bed in my room.

Walking through the door though, I heard some movement from my bedroom. I assumed it was the Queen and walked right in with no fear. Yet when I came face to face with reality, I saw Eli sitting on the edge of my bed holding a little yellow rose with a complex look on his face. I got a little wide-eyed but came in anyways.

"Hey?" I said to him in a soft nighttime whisper. He looked up and his green eyes lit like candles.

"Hey," Eli grinned and bared that smile that just made you want to try to look as perfect.

"What's up?" I asked as he stood up in front of me holding out the rose. I took it from him with a smile and stared at how pretty it was.

"Clare, I have been waiting half a lifetime just to see your face. I saw it in books and pictures, thinking how beautiful you were just on paper. It took me in awe to see that in real life you are even more captivating than the hundreds of photos. It only took me a few seconds of your time to realize that I loved you. I love you so much. They always told me it was my destiny to be one of the three king nominees, but they always said they had no power to see who you would choose. I have seen the life in your crystal clear eyes for only a day, yet I know if someone took it away I would die. Your personality is so kind and splendid that a conversation without your voice can hardly be called a conversation at all. What I'm trying to say is- is that I love you more than anything in the universe and I would go anywhere just to be with you. I love you," he rambled with a grin describing in sensory every word that escaped his lips.

I approached him from our five-foot-distance and gazed into his eyes. I saw the words he had said and the truth in them. I stretched up on my toes and crashed my lips to his like a firecracker in the sky. It felt like hours just standing there with him obviously dumbfounded against me. Though when he finally got the message he reached down and laid his arms around my waist. The kiss grew more intense and I put my arms around his neck, dropping the flower to the floor.

He lifted me up and laid me on the bed, hovering above me. His dark hair fell in my face but it changed nothing. I flipped him over so now he held me up above him never breaking our touch. Somehow we crawled in the middle of the bed and I was now laid across his body, still kissing with the same passion as the minute our lips met. His hands scaled my back until they finally dropped right when I our lips detached from each other. I laid my head on his chest and pressed myself tightly into his arms.

"I love you, too," I said with a smile. I looked up at his smirk and joyous eyes.

"You know, now I'm not going to let go of you. Ever," and with that we drifted into a deep sleep. That one night's rest was all I needed to decide.

**Thank you for reading and as always sorry for the long break but I meet you in words sometimes! I hope that you will all check out my website listed on my profile or www. Livibooks (dot) com!**

**With love, MadameLivi**


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Coronation Preparation and Clear Winners

I fluttered my eyes open the next morning to the scent of flowers and earth. I look up to see Eli's face rested on a pillow, awkwardly under the covers. Awkwardly topless. Oh goodness what the heck happened last night. I sprang out of bed and observed myself. Same as ever. I remembered us kissing and falling asleep, but not Eli stripping his shirt and us sliding under the covers. I lay on the side of the bed, waiting for Eli to wake up to get an explanation.

A few minutes later he opened his eyes and looked at the ceiling. I threw my face in front of his gaze but all he did was bear a wide smile. He hugged me into his chest and I laid my head down on his shoulder.

"Why are you topless and why were we underneath the covers?" I mutter into his shoulder, kissing him on his neck. He laughs. Why would he laugh?

"I wasn't going to sleep in my day clothes and you were shivering like a small dog. So I went downstairs borrowed a pair of pajama pants and came back up to cover you with sheets. I curled up next to you because you were too beautiful to leave," Eli smiled and looked down into my eyes. I grinned and stretched up to kiss him on the lips.

"What would you have done if we had…done what you thought?" he asked perplexed.

"Though I have hardly known you for a day and a half, I wouldn't have cared because I can tell that we have something special," I got up and smiled at him. He smiled even wider back. I smiled the biggest smile possible. He laughed hard.

We heard heeled footsteps come down the hall. The Queen. She couldn't know that Eli was here! She would surely freak out. Eli had heard the steps too and looked into my eyes with fear. He ran out of the bed and threw himself right underneath it. I laughed a little.

"That's your master James Bond hiding plan, Eli?" I ask in a whisper.

"I'm not Eli; I'm an old shoebox…"

I sigh and go sit on the bed and wait for the Queen to come. She glides in with a grin and bows.

"Ready for your grand coronation?" she practically skips with joy.

"Yeah I'm so ready to pick a guy to marry today," I awkwardly smile at her. She returns with a smile, too.

"I have your dress in this bag," she claps her hands and a card soldier brings her a huge dress bag and a shoebox.

"Wow, this is really happening," I mutter in a semi-excited way.

"Let's dress you up!" she laughs.

We walk into my grand closet and she unzips the dress bag. There in front of my eyes is a long ballroom gown in the most beautiful shade of green. It was identical to Eli's eyes. Around the torso there was a white bow tied to the back and the ribbon it was made of was beaded with pearls. The skirt of the dress had many layers of tulle and a bottom silk layer. It had small off the shoulder puffed sleeves, similar to the ones on Belle's yellow gown from Beauty and the Beast. I loved it. Not only was it a change from my usual blue, white, and pink routine, but it was breathtakingly detailed.

The Queen left me alone as I slipped off my night gown and slipped on the beautiful dress. She came in after and buttoned it up in the back. She handed me a pair of white sparkly heats with a peep-toe that matched the gown gorgeously.

A few minutes later a group of weirdly dressed people came in. There were five of them, three women and two men. They had makeup palettes, nail polish, and every hair styling tool imaginable.

"These stylists are going to enhance your already natural beauty before the big ceremony. I'll meet you downstairs after they finish so we can have breakfast," the Queen says before she leaves the room.

The stylists all smile broadly at me and sit me down in a chair in the middle of the closet. Eli was still under the bed, I remembered. I looked out the closet doors and saw him roll out from under the bed and stand up stretching out his back. He made eye contact with me and smirked. Then he went running out the door and down the stairs to get his clothes back, I assumed.

One stylist took my hands while another slipped off my shoes and grabbed my feet. They began clipping, filing, and painting my nails a beautiful shade of ivory. Two people were curling and clipping my hair back with what seemed like tiny pearl-like beads. The last one, a girl, was picking out shades from her palette of makeup to apply later. The shades were mainly neutrals that she picked out, along with a light, rose pink blush. The lipstick was a soft yet deep pink that looked very pretty. Its opacity was unbelievable.

I began to relax in the chair. This is it. I thought about it long and hard. I was going to stay here, get married, maybe see my parents one day in the future, and wait to rule the giant kingdom until the White Queen retired. This was my new beginning.

I closed my eyes softly as the woman with the makeup palette dusted over my skin with a light base powder. She applied a liquid foundation over it and then began on my blush.

I felt the two stylists doing my hair in an intricate design on top of my loose curls. The two doing my nails were already almost done, as they were applying a top coat on the pretty ivory nail polish. The one, a man, painting my toes turned on a hair dryer and began to dry the paint. The heat from the dryer felt nice on my skin after a chilly night of sleep.

The woman doing my makeup gestured for me to close my eyes and she began to apply primer, then shadow, then liner, and finally mascara. Soon enough all the stylists finished and helped me up, leading me to a wall-height mirror in the closet.

I looked deeply at the girl staring back at me, unsure if her name was Clare. She had tiny, ivory pearls cascading in her curls, lightly holding strands back a little. Her eyes were gleaming a soft blue and her cheeks were the perfect shade of pink. She looked more slender than usual because her humungous ball gown hit her waist just right. Her nails were done with little blue roses on them, yet it all looked subtle. Elegant, if I may.

It took a few glances into the familiar eyes to realize that the stunning girl in the green was really just the Canadian girl from the back desk in Degrassi.

The makeup stylist reached up (because she was very, very short) and put a strand of pearl, matching the ones in my hair, around my neck. In between the two biggest pearls in the front was a tiny silver cross that gave me the reminder that even though I was about to become the secondary ruler of an underground kingdom, God still had a plan for me even though I did not yet know what it was.

I walked out of the closet as the stylists smiled at their work and wandered quietly out my bedroom door. I was again alone and for the first time actually appreciated it. I sat down carefully on the bed and let my mind go blank for a few seconds. This was it. I was going to be a princess. It was every girl's dream, right?

I walked out my door and was fed promptly by the stairs a glass of milk and some wheat toast. After quickly eating it through nerves I made my way carefully down the stairs, holding my heels in my hands to avoid tripping. Once I was halfway down, I could hear the murmur of loud voices and cheers from outside the castle walls. I finally got to the bottom where the Queen was holding her hand out with a big smile.

"Are you ready to become a kingdom ruler?" she asked and I nodded softly. Here goes nothing, right?

**Thank you very much for reading my stories especially to the dedicated readers who have been with my since the day I began writing Clare in Wonderland or And the Wedding Bells Ring. I hope that you will all go to my profile and check out my personal website at www. Livibooks .webs. com.**

**Love,**

**MadameLivi**


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9: A Man of His Words and a Man of His Actions

The Queen gestured for me to follow her when she held up her hand. She would, of course, go first being the head of the entire kingdom and all.

I waited in the shadows with only a strip of light hitting my face as the Queen walked out to a podium and tens of thousands of people cheered. I saw children and adults. Even elders and babies, all there to see me. I took a deep breath as the Queen began to talk.

"My young and glorious Kingdom, I have you here today to show a rise of hope! A new beginning and a future couple! Through the actions of God, we have somehow been able to have Clare Diane Edwards here to lead us and love us. She is the one, better than even Alice! Her brains are outstanding, her leadership is amazing, her heart is huge, her battle skills are precise, and her life is now in our protection. I am in complete and honorable faith for this lovely, wonderful young woman. Today, my people, we shall crown her princess!" Cheers break out so loud that I stumble back and two guards come and help me regain balance, "We shall find her soul mate! Clare! Come meet your Kingdom!"

The Queen raises her hand as I walk out with a smile, more confident than I expected. I am lead by two short, brunette women to sit in the throne that as of yesterday was rusted and dead, yet it was now polished and engraved with a ginormous C. A blue cushion was even placed for my comfort. I sit down as everyone cheers at me as they clap their hands together. I wave back and blow a few kisses to act the part. The Queen grabs an odd, old looking microphone and sits in her throne next to mine.

"Bring out the men!" she hollers into it as the sound booms from all over the Castle walls.

A row of three boys walk out in front of me but I only see one. Eli. He is dressed in a glamorous black ensemble and he turns to face me. I don't know how to say it, but his eyes lit up when we made eye contact. They went from a dusty green to gleaming emeralds. I could stare all day but I put on a game face and observed the other two. One on the left of Eli was a tall, brunette boy with blue eyes and pale skin. He was handsome but he wasn't complete. The boy on the right of Eli was oddly turned to the crowd to where I couldn't see his face but I didn't need to, because I purely didn't care.

The Queen spoke again, "I shall now hand this microphone to Clare so she may question her candidates of marriage!" She hands me the microphone and I hold it lightly in my right hand. I look at the tall boy to the left. He would be questioned first, not that it mattered though because I already knew the ending.

"You! To my left. State your name," I command. I felt powerful.

"I am Jake Martin, Your Highness Clare. I am your future love because I-"

"Hush! I did not ask of you reasons. I will ask the questions here," The Queen smiled as I said this.

"Yes, Ma'am," Jake Martin said.

"What do you think when you see me?" I ask him with my eyes on Eli. I knew his response might be good but I wouldn't care.

"I think of power. I think of us together, in a Castle, ruling side by side. I think of you pretty eyes and your past that everyone knows, but everyone doesn't. I think of Clare, Clare Martin," He smiles slightly and I scoff at him.

"Jake Martin this is a sad response. You think of power? What kind of being would talk of power to a love or give love to a power? What persona would speak of my past as we sit her in my present? And finally, what 'soul mate' would schmooze his way into my heart like that? Jake Martin, love is natural and love is fluent. Love is not present in this conversation," I bow my head to a stop and stare at the now frazzled schmoozer that is Jake Martin.

"You, in the middle, please state you name?" I smile trying to act like he is unknown to me. Eli smiles back.

"I am Elijah Goldsworthy, Your Highness," He bows slightly with a smirk.

"Wonderful. What do you think when you see me?" I nervously ask looking down at my hands.

"When I see you? When I hear you, feel you, or see you time stops. It's like all I can see is your glorious eyes glowing from your beautiful face and the rest of the picture goes black. I think of you smile and that I need to see it more often. I think of you heart, so fragile and still mending, yet able to have a capacity of more love than the entire Kingdom. I don't think of your past because I was not in it, therefore I need not change it because I am luckily in it now. I think of you mind and how it knows to wrap around the most knowledgeable things and solve them with ease. I think of how when you enter a room, all spirits are lifted and the décor becomes three shades brighter than it previously was. Clare, when I look at you all I see is you," Eli smiles dazed holding his hand out as if he saw it all right in front of him. But I was right in front of him and I felt the urge to say "ditto" but I realized it would be inappropriate.

I smiled and looked at him with the brightest eyes I could and said, "I feel all that and more when I see you."

Jake Martin sighed and slouched down a little.

Though I knew the clear winner, I turned to the last man. He was hooded and facing the crowd. His hands were stuffed in his pockets and he looked overall, unwelcoming and creepy. Yet, I had to give him a chance.

"You, the final one in the dark red, what is your name?" I asked still dazed by Eli but still filled with power.

The man laughed, not a welcoming laugh, a scary laugh that you hear when you know something wrong will happen. He chuckled deeper and deeper until her finally spoke.

"My name doesn't matter but why don't we get down to business," He pulled out a long knife, maybe a sword from where I couldn't see and turned. His brown hair meeting the light, he spoke, "Well my name is-"

**Well you know I love you all but I must keep you hooked! Update soon but please check out my website and comment in the guest book at www. Livibooks . webs. Com. Minus the spaces of course! Or you can just check out my profile for the link. Comment, Favorite, and keep reading!**

**Love and XOXO,**

**MadameLivi**


	10. Chapter 10

**Do you want to create a cameo or other original character to be featured in this story and one of my original stories? Go to the bottom of this chapter to find out how you can win a chance to create a character for this complex story!**

Chapter 10: Hide and Fight

"Fitz, but you can call me your-worst-nightmare," said the hooded man as he lunged forward at me. I watched as Jake ran down the stairs in a hurry, screaming bloody-murder. But Jake was right, bloody-murder would happen, just not yet.

As Fitz lunged at me, I was swiftly spun to the side by Eli's quick grasp. My throne, however, was not as fortunate. Fitz turned with a snarl at Eli, but not soon enough before Eli grabbed my hand and and flew me down the long flight of stairs. At the top, I saw three guards rush the Queen into the castle while two more turned at Fitz. They threw their staffs at him, yet they were blocked by Fitz's giant sword. I turned around, trying to yell at them to run inside, but Eli blocked my mouth with his hand and hissed towards me.

"You can't help them now, then he'll here us and know where we are going," Eli muttered quickly.

"Well I'm almost positive that that must be a lie because even I do not know where we are going!" I whisper-yelled.

"I'll tell you when we get there," He hastily said.

"Fabulous," I sulked.

"Okay we are here, the forest," Eli said stopping when we where under a humungous flower.

"Odd..." I said until I felt a sharp sting in my upper arm and looked down. There was a giant slice through my flesh. Blood was running down my arm like a smooth waterfall as it dripped onto the dirt.

"Oh my gosh," I muttered.

"What's wrong?" Eli said as he turned around, instantly seeing my arm and panicking with a vengeance.

"I'll fix it," I mumbled before I fell onto the ground into a small pool of blood. It felt warm against my pale skin as I shivered in shock.

Eli instantly sati down next to me and went to work. He tore a strip of fabric from the bottom of my dress and began wrapping it around my cut. I looked up at the tall flower, focusing on the bright orange hues as a immense amount of pressure was put on my arm. I felt much better and my vision stopped blurring as Eli grabbed my hand and pulled my up to my feet.

I looked him in the bright green orbs that were focused intently on my face. I stretched up on my toes and quickly pecked him on the lips, until he was angrily pulled away from me.

I reached out my hand to grab him, but a blade was jolted at my cheek.

"You move, you both die. You stay, one dies. What's it gonna be?" Fitz asked as he held his thick arm over Eli's neck. I stepped back and looked directly at his monstrous expression.

"Good, now I'm gonna walk away and you are going to stay right where you are. When I leave, you will not come after me. If you do there will be consequences. Understand Princess Puff?" Fitz scolded towards me. I nodded with a grotesque glare as he slowly pulled Eli away from me and off between to huge flowers.

What he didn't know is that I was watching every step he made. I was studying the footprints indented in the soil. I looked at his cursory manner or walking, able to tell that he had somewhere to be. I memorized it all before I slowly dodged to another flower.

Yet, I fell in pain over a headache when the ringing voices from yesterday came back.

_Danger is found in Underland_

_ Yet most is part of a mysterious plan_

_ A green star will guide your way_

_ Some will live and one you shall slay_

I looked around after the beaming headache stopped. Looking into the sky I saw no green star, but in the distance there was one on top of a far away tower. Bingo. I hoisted the bottom of my dress up from in front of my feet and began sprinting on a different path then the large footsteps left by Fitz. My breath never ran out, for adrenaline pushed me forward. After about a forth of a mile of endless sprinting, I came to see a rundown mansion with boarded up windows and peeling black paint. It's dimensions were severely unbalanced to were it went from incredibly thin at the bottom, to incredibly wide at the top. I heard a yell from the tippy-top of the building and instantly recognized Eli's beautiful voice. I squinted an alarming glare from, from behind a flower, in the direction of the huge building.

I muttered to myself with courage, "Off with your head, a slay from me and you shall find yourself dead..."

**Thank you again for reading this book! I know that it is definitely the most popular fan fiction that I have ever written. Now, I have a proposal. ****Do you want to create an original character that will be shown in this fan fiction and one of my original stories?**** If so, go to my website www. livibooks .webs .com and read the stories! Comment in the Guestbook link on the sidebar with your favorite book on the site and tell me why it is your favorite. I LOVE feedback. I will pick a winner either with random. org or by the most in depth and complex answer. PLEASE ENTER THIS CONTEST BY NOVEMBER FIRST! I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I will hopefully see you all on my website.**

**xoxo**

**MadameLivi **


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm baaaaaaack**

**Chapter 11: Not So Safe and Sound**

I approached the steps of the horrific mansion and looked at the door. It was propped open a few inches, so I wouldn't have to break open a window or anything. I stepped onto the first step, realizing how much noise my shoes made, and kicked the sparkly, little heels off. I took silent steps towards the door and then slowly propped it open and slid myself inside.

The inside of the house was creepier than the outside. Old paintings of harsh looking people and creatures were hung along the walls of ripped wallpaper. I could've sworn I saw the eyes of the paintings move, but then again this entire world was a crazy haze that could only be compared to a mixture of the most vile drugs and a terrible nightmare. Tables floated in the air and a green fog seemed to mask the floor. I kicked the fog out of the way to reveal bugs crawling with rats on old, rotting wood. I felt a terrified shiver run down my spine.

Looking around, I finally found the staircase and began to climb it. From the outside, I could tell that the building was about seven stories tall. The second floor seemed like a walk in a park compared to the first floor. There was literally nothing there except an old chair and a dresser. I ran up the next flight of stairs to the third floor. It was no walk in the park.

Skeletons and rotting bodies lined the floor. Some had open eyes, some had blood running out of their mouths, and some just looked distorted. I tried to step around them, but it was hard not to step on a random hand or leg. I was almost to the next flight of stairs when I was startled by the unpredictable.

A hand reached out and grabbed my ankle.

I forced myself not to yelp, but that was a difficult task in such a difficult situation. Looking down, I noticed a younger man looking up at me. He appeared to be melting, as I took noticed of his skin that boiled and bubbled. His eyes grew wide as I made eye contact with him.

"Help. Us," he could barely choke out the words to me, but his grip on my ankle grew stronger.

"Wh-What happened to you all?" I asked as he tried to breathe.

"Fitz. Fitz has cursed us all. We suffer days and nights as he takes our joy away and feasts on it himself. He enjoys watching us suffer. He loves the sounds of pain," the man said as he panted for air.

"How can I help?" I asked, terribly confused. He closed his eyes as he writhed in pain. All I wanted to do was to make it stop.

"If you kill him, our curses will be lifted," the man winced.

I took it into thought. How could _I_ kill someone? I was too innocent for this! But I had to save all of these helpless folks, for I was to be their new queen one say. How could I let my people down?

"I'll do it," I swore, and the man released his grip from around my ankle. I ran to the wall where a collection of old swords were on the wall. I stared at them, for I didn't know how on earth I was to pick one. I knew nothing of swords! The voice returned.

_The chair in the corner holds what you wish to hold_

_ Lift the cushion to reveal the Vorpal Sword_

I rushed to the chair and lifted the cushion to reveal a gleaming, silver sword. I lifted it up, surprised by how lightweight it was. I swung it once and then held it tightly as I ran up the next two flights of stairs. The fifth floor scared me to death.

Ghostly images of people that I knew throughout my life crowded the room. The first figure that confronted me was my sister, Darcy. I could see right through her, in her blue tank top and old blue jeans. She smirked as she looked me up and down.

"Hideous," she mumbled before vanishing from in front of me. I looked down at myself, on the verge of disgust.

The next figure that approached me was my mother. She crossed her arms and let her dagger eyes seek into my soul. She let out a snicker and then pointed towards me.

"Worthless," she said as she rested her hand on her temple before crumbling into a cloud of black dust that whooshed into my face.

My father then approached me with his hands in his pocket. A ghostly tear fell down his cheek and then rose into the air. "Disappointment," he said before he melted to the floor.

Jenna, from school, then approached me with an evil glare that could shatter a thousand souls. She grinned evilly and then let out a malicious and hardy laugh. "I can't believe K.C. even had the mind to stoop as low as to date you. What a fool he is! You're barely good enough to walk this earth," she spat before forming into a hundred black birds that flew out the cracks of the boarded windows.

K.C., himself, then approached me. He looked at his shoes and then smiled. "You thought I actually cared about you? Big mistake," he said shortly before a flame took him in.

I fell to the floor and sobbed into my dress's skirt. Was this the room of truth? I was worthless, hideous, and a disappointment, wasn't I? I couldn't believe I even thought for a second that I was barely half good enough to be the queen of anything. I wasn't good enough to be loved on earth, let alone in this world full of strangers.

The final figure approached me and I looked up at him. His figure was not as ghostly as the others. In fact, he looked almost completely solid. His green eyes seemed to glow just as the fog over the floor did. I looked up at him, hoping his words would contain good intent. His black, wispy hair seemed to blow lightly in the fearful wind of this mansion.

"I don't love you. I would never marry you. You're a hideous bitch who is in way over her head. I'm clearly too good for you. I can only hope that my beautiful girlfriend, Julia, was right when she said you would be killed soon," Eli spoke with a harsh tone as his nostrils flared with anger. His figure fell into a hundred white roses that oozed maroon blood from their stems. I lifted one into the air as I cried, but it fell to ashes.

I stood up, trying to convince myself that these were lies. That is such a hard task though! How can a human convince themselves that even fake words were, well, fake? We can't. We can find a gram of truth in even the most hideous lies. We have this ability to convince ourselves that we aren't good enough. I believe that is why the world has gone so glum, up above me and even down here in Underland. We spend so much of our energy making each other feel bad about themselves just so we can feel good. Everyone ends up hurt in the end. It's useless. How do I convince myself that these ghosts were lying? Maybe it was because part of me, and a dominant part at that, believed every word that left their mouths.

I forced myself to climb the second to last flight of stairs. I help my sword tightly as I made eye contact with no other than Fitz. He smirked devilishly towards me.

"So you came after your little lover-boy, didn't you? That was a mistake," he chuckled as he flung open two switchblades that fell into his hands out of the sleeves of his sweatshirt. I gasped and drew my sword, which I had no idea how to use.  
Fitz lunged towards me with his right hand. I blocked it and then pushed hard enough to send that blade flying across the room. This lightweight sword had so much force behind it, I could hardly believe it. It practically guided me through the entire fight. We brawled until I finally knocked the left blade from his hand and sent it falling through a crack in the floor. He gasped.

I kicked him to the ground and then lifted my sword. He threw his hands over his face, leaving his chest perfectly exposed. I put all of the force that was in my body into jabbing the Vorpal Sword right into his heart. He let out a scream as I pulled my sword out from his chest, wiping off the blood on my dress, which was already tattered and torn. I left him to die as I sprinted up the last flight of stairs where Eli laid on the floor with his hands and feet bound with rope.

"Eli!" I cried out with glee as I ran to him. He grinned up at me, exposing his bright green eyes from behind the black curtain of hair that had covered them previously. I quickly untied him and he rose to his feet, pulling me into a long kiss. We parted and I pulled myself closely next to him, laying my head on his chest, just so I could hear his heartbeat. I was terrified five minutes ago that I'd never hear it again.

"You came for me," he muttered, still in shock.

"Of course I did. I love you, don't I?" I giggled as I hugged him closer.

"Bravo," a voice from the stairway said with a villainous chuckle. I gasped, turning around to face Fitz. Blood ran down his body from the gaping hole that I had made.

"But-But I killed you!" I stated in shock as Eli pulled me tighter to him.

Fitz merely grinned at me with a look that he must have learned from Satan himself, "That's funny. You see, Clare, you tried to kill me by stabbing me in the heart. The only issue in that little plan is that I don't have a heart."

**Thank you for reading my story and I once again apologize for the long gap in between my postings. High school is rough, isn't it? Luckily it's summer vacation! I hope to post again later this week! **

**xoxo**

**MadameLivi **


End file.
